Dryad
"When learning of the Driads' ancestral origin, I never expected to find out Mars was their home planet." Dr. Tomali Gunojee. The Dryads are a sentient plant species, they once hailed to the forth planet of Sol the Humans call Mars until their homeworld was attacked by the invading Hei'len, forced them to flee their nearly dead world and migrate to the new Driad homeworld, Hiju. They are one of the oldest members of the Sha'dahl Empire and first to make contact with the neighboring race. Physiology Dryads are a strangely unique species, they are a very rare example of sentient plant life. They are truly alien by appearance. Humans thought of it as a fantasy over history but when first contact with their species proved false. Most of their roots or "branch-like" tentacles evolved in the same way as arms or legs, the tendrils protrude from their "arms", back or abdomen. Their biology reveals that they can change their appearence to which is best suited for them, many would have many elongated vines. The Dryads can stretch their bodies at such length when swinging branches on their homeworld and can regenerate any damaged tissue or regrow a new at an instant speed. Like plants their diets are mainly water and light energy for photosynthesise, turning that into chemical energy. Although Drayds are dependant on water, their species had long ago adapted their bodies to sustain the moist in them for long time during the dry seasons until rain comes on any planet they are on. Their alternate way of survival is absorbing light energy to remain active, but would use too much of the stored energy they kept until they would eventually tire out, returning to their natural state or remain in dark areas. Their language is hard to translate but some with translating microbes and mindbenders such as a Gilakadian or a Falpearion could translate their speech without problems. Dryad are able to use chemical energy to sustain themselves, telepathic communications with each other and other species only by physical touch with one of their tendrils, one of their chemicals was developed to spray on the target of a predator or enemy that attacked them or possibly killed, once it is sprayed on the target's clothing or skin will be marked by their victom so many Dryads within the area would recognise the chemicals for 75 hours. Culture and Society Little is known about their culture, they are peaceful but can get agressive when threatened or if their former homeplanet and colony system are being invaded. Some of their culture is similiar to the Sha'dahl allies and other species. History Around the time after the Sha'dahl had developed sentience on their neighboring planet, the Dryads' ancestors were primitive flower-like species with webbed root tendrils to glide through forests. Later on as they evolve, the easliest Dryads developed strong telekinetic link with each, planet species and their homeworld. Increasing their intelligence to create flora-based technology with symbiotic link with the Dryads. First Contact When the Dryads have become a spacefaring race they made first contact with the Sha'dahls who escaped a near annhilation of their species and all of life on their homeworld. both species exhange interstellar travel, knowledge and forming a successful relation with eachother. The Dryads never encountered non-plant species, possibly their homeworld was inhabit by rare fuana lifeforms or mostly they usually find them in marine natural habitat. Sha'dahl Empire The Dryads may also made allies but also enemies outside the nation, they fear their planet would one day be attacked by forces, greater then them. The Dryads had developed bio-weapons and even making their species more adaptive to non-martian enviromnments. Their cities had been trasformed into webbed tree-like towers and living ships. Somewhere between 900,000 B.C.E. and 800,700 B.C.E. one of their probes that were sent to the Olympius Nebula for study, there it was discovered by an alien government called the Elemental Ascendance run by an adance diversed entities called the Elementals. The nation covers almost all of the quadrant, most of the members of the Ascendancy almost mistaken the Dryads as one of the elementals races, it also made them curious of these species that they became one of the well known races in the galaxy. Both these nations were interested in eachother's techonolgical and biological developments. The Sha'dahl empire and the Elemental Ascendance later agreed to form a treaty for trade relations of technologies, cultures, resources and further understanding of eachother. Wraith Incursion Near the coming end of the Wraith Incursion the Sol system was invaded, Taul'ra was cloaked from their sensors for it was their prime target to conquer the system but instead targeting Mars instead. The Dryads chosed to flee for survival before the Wraith used their fighters and their superior weapons to bombard the world into a dry lifeless wasteland. The Dryads then set their sights to Hiju, over 500 light years from the star system, making it lushful of jungles and lakes inhabited by plant-animal species. The Dryads passed on the history of their homeplanet to their decendants, vowing one day the homeworld of their race would return to it's original state. Aveerian conflict In 1867 B.C.E. A few colony vessels run by a race of Aveerians came into orbit, claiming to colonise the planet as their own, unaware that they entered Sha'dahl space and into Dryad soverign territory. The Dryads wanted them out of their star system, as an unfamiliar race they have no right to force them out of their planet and destroy what they long made after their ancestral world was 'gone' thousands of years ago. They heard what they went at war with the Tharons but the Thihilem Republic stopped it from turning into a war. It was a long argue with the Aveerian representatives claiming their race could not survive in the long summer and winter seasons and may harm both their species but they relucatanly agreed and were givin a map to a new planet for them to settle elsewhere outside the imperial borders, unfortunatly some, mainly the males wanted Hiju wether the Dryads like it or not. A few warships prepared to target the forests to destroy and land, but the orbital defence systems absorbed and deflected them back at the ships as a warning to all Aveerians and captured the invaders. Mars Reborn After the third battle for earth ended in victorius they sent Dryad ships over orbit of their ancestral homeworld along with the Tharons terraforming the red planet. In the rainforest the humans discovered an isolated group of Dryads, some humans wanted them off their planet for being alien and killing human lives, but the natives wanted to help the isolated Dryads to know of their species which were then put under the protection list by the United Nations. When the Tharons entered the solar system they informed the Sha'dahl empire of a group of xenophobic terrorists stolen some ships with weapons to invade Mars and attack the Terraformers, they holded no regrets killing in self defence and protecting what was once theirs. To the surviving Terrorists who escaped the mass slaughter by the Wraith they commented how humiliated they were when beaten by aliens which they nearly humiliated their own species into proving of their 'purity' to all non-humans. In 2017 a small group of Dryads went to Mars along with humans when a group of earlier Dryads that survived the Hei'len invasion. The former Dryad homeworld now known as Mars was recolonised to it's earth-like appearence like it's neighbouring planet. Technology Their entire technology, weapons, ships and cities are all bio-engineered, they go back since they allied with the Sha'dahls. They are well known to have developed bacta technology in the earlier days of the Republic alliance even creating crystals to store energy, possibly during the first war with the Hei'len. The Dryads also helped creating Fraylenites and attach them to their weapons and vehicles when ready. They were one of the few selected species in the Milky Way galaxy who's DNA was suited for the Tharon project for Terraforming planets. Trivia *In Ancient Greek mythology Dryads were known to Humans as tree spirits or tree nymphs in other myths and legends. Category:Sentient Races Category:Sha'dahl Empire Species Category:Plant Species Category:Dryads Category:Species of Mars